


Dive

by KirryLovesNarry



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Ed Sheeran - Freeform, M/M, Mostly Fluff, Songfic, University Student Harry, University Student Niall, a bit of angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-04 13:00:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 16,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10278746
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KirryLovesNarry/pseuds/KirryLovesNarry
Summary: Pretty much every Ed Sheeran song inspires me but when I heard “Dive” off of his new album Divide, I decided to turn it into a story. I still have some prompts sitting in my inbox that I will get to but I had to do this first. :) I also thought about taking all of the songs off of the album and turning them all into one big Narry fic. I may still. We’ll see.





	1. Dive Lyrics

**Dive by Ed Sheeran, ÷ Album**

Maybe I came on too strong  
Maybe I waited too long  
Maybe I played my cards wrong  
Oh just a little bit wrong  
Baby I apologise for it  
  
I could fall or I could fly  
Here in your aeroplane  
I could live, I could die  
Hanging on the words you say  
I’ve been known to give my all  
And jumping in harder than  
10,000 rocks on the lake  
  
So don’t call me baby  
Unless you mean it  
Don’t tell me you need me  
If you don’t believe it  
So let me know the truth  
Before I dive right into you  
  
You’re a mystery  
I have travelled the world  
And there’s no other girl like you, no one  
What’s your history?  
Do you have a tendency to lead some people on?  
Cause I heard you do  
  
I could fall or I could fly  
Here in your aeroplane  
I could live, I could die  
Hanging on the words you say  
I’ve been known to give my all  
And lie awake, every day  
Don’t know how much I can take  
  
So don’t call me baby  
Unless you mean it  
Don’t tell me you need me  
If you don’t believe it  
So let me know the truth  
Before I dive right into you  
  
I could fall or I could fly  
Here in your aeroplane  
I could live, I could die  
Hanging on the words you say  
I’ve been known to give my all  
Sitting back, looking at  
Every mess that I made  
  
So don’t call me baby  
Unless you mean it  
Don’t tell me you need me  
If you don’t believe it  
So let me know the truth  
Before I dive right into you  
Before I dive right into you  
Before I dive right into you


	2. Maybe I played my cards wrong

Growing up in Ireland, Niall looked up to his older brother, Greg, and all of his friends but especially Niall “Bressie” Breslin. He’s not sure if it’s because they had the same name or it could have been because Bressie was so strong and popular and everyone, including his own big brother, looked up to him. It also probably had something to do with Niall figuring out that he was gay at 12 years old and Bressie was hot. Of course Bressie was a couple years older so they didn’t have classes together or really any reason to hang out if Greg didn’t invite Niall along, which he rarely did, so Niall developed reasons to talk to Bressie on his own.

Bressie played football. Niall liked watching football and he’d played it in Phys Ed at school of course but he figured if he took a bigger interest in it, maybe he could get Bressie to coach him a bit. It worked. Niall joined the team and Bressie was thrilled to be able to impart his wisdom on the young Horan. As they got older, Niall regularly went to Bressie when he had questions or concerns about the game and Bressie loved being able to give advice. Niall actually became quite good, becoming a starting player on his school team along side team captain Bressie who kept telling Niall over and over how proud he was of him.

When Niall was 15, he decided he wanted to tell Bressie how he felt about him. There were other gay students at their school, and Bressie was even friends with some of them, so Niall figured he had a shot at the older boy. They had just won a match and Niall scored one of the goals so he knew it’d be the perfect time to confess his crush. That night, as Niall prepared himself to tell Bressie the truth, he found him kissing Laura at their team party. Niall was devastated. He never thought he didn’t have a chance. Even after seeing Bressie with Laura, Niall thought he’d gotten to Bressie too late. If he would have confessed earlier, Bressie would be his boyfriend. Bressie graduated at the end of the year and hugged Niall, calling him the little brother he’d always wanted. Although Niall’s insides squeezed a little at the description, he was just glad that Bressie felt close to him. Maybe in a few years they’d get their shot again.

For the rest of his high school years, Niall had a crush here and there but he didn’t love anyone the way he’d loved the elder Niall. When he went to college, Niall was ready to meet the true love of his life. He kept his eyes open and every man he came in contact with was judged against Bressie, which just wasn’t fair until he met Zayn. Zayn didn’t play football and he wasn’t big and strong like Bressie but he was smart and possibly the prettiest man Niall had ever seen. Zayn was in his art history class. Niall had no interest in art but he needed a humanities credit and this class worked with the rest of his schedule. Zayn was brilliant especially when it came to art.

“Do you want to come paint with me after class?” Zayn asked a somewhat shy Niall after their third class together.

Although he had no interest in painting, Niall wasn’t going to miss a chance at spending time with this boy. He went home with Zayn where he set up a paper for Niall to paint on while he worked on his own canvas. Although everything Niall painted was awful, Zayn kept praising him, telling him everyone can be an artist and that he’s an impressionist, painting his feelings instead of a farm with animals like he’d set out to do. When Niall was feeling frustrated, Zayn would stand behind him, his chest to Niall’s back, take his hand and whisper in his ear, “softer. Be gentle and just let the picture paint itself.”

After several of these meetings, Niall was starting to have very strong feelings for Zayn and it seemed they were returned. Niall decided he wasn’t going to miss his chance like he had with Bressie. Zayn was pressed against his back again, showing him how to combine the colors to the hue he’d requested when Niall quickly turned and kissed him. It was Niall’s first kiss and because he’d acted so quickly, it barely landed on his lips. With Niall’s hands on Zayn’s cheeks, he couldn’t see Zayn’s face but he quickly felt him pulling away. What Niall saw devastated him. Zayn’s eyes were wide and blown out, and not in the good way. He was fumbling for words and turning the paint brush around and around in his hands. “I, uh, Niall, I, uh,” Zayn stumbled. “I don’t like you,” he rushed out. Realizing the awful words he’d said, he moved forward into Niall’s space again and tried to smooth it out, his hands up, reaching for Niall’s arms. “I just mean, there’s this guy in my dorm, Harry, who I’m kind of seeing. He’s just, he’s a little more my type I think. More into the creative stuff and not so much into sports. He, uh, he asked me out last week and I think we’re going to start dating.”

Niall backed away, nodding quickly, embarrassment washing over him. “Sure, sure, yeah, sorry I, uh, sorry I did that. I’ll be going now,” he mumbled. Although Zayn called him back, Niall was too ashamed at having thrown himself at the boy. I thought I read the signs right, Niall thought. He was leaning over me, whispering in my ear. Why would he do that if he was dating someone else?

They continued to see each other in their art history class but Niall never took Zayn up on painting in his flat again. The best Niall could do was offer up a half smile and wave when he spoke to him. The day he saw Zayn holding hands with Mr. Tall Dark and Handsome he did not quickly walk in the other direction to avoid being seen. He had to go that way, quickly. Even though it was the opposite direction of his dorm.

Now that he wasn’t pining after Zayn in all of his free time, Niall decided he should probably make some other friends. His roommate Sean invited him to the campus bar one night for the umpteenth time and, for the first time, Niall took him up on the offer. They walked in and the first thing that Niall noticed was that it was loud. The music was turned up which meant people were yelling to talk to each other. Sean led Niall to a booth with some of his other friends before going to the bar to get pints for them both. Niall knew Sean was trying to loosen him up and he actually accepted the pint willingly. His brother didn’t drink much so Niall wasn’t much of a drinker but he saw it was the thing to do in university and wanted to fit in.

“You’re Irish! Isn’t it like required for you to drink pints all night?” Sean’s friend Conor asked.

Niall could only laugh off the stereotype. “I’ll drink a couple pints but it’s not really my thing.” For a bit, Niall relaxed but mostly listened to his roommate and his friends interspersing talk about video games and the different attractive girls around the bar. One thing got Niall’s interest though. A shaggy haired brunette was not too far away from their booth playing pool. He glanced over and saw Niall staring at him and gave him a predatory grin. Niall could only bite his lip thinking the boy was very cute. He finished his game of pool and then sauntered up to Niall with his eyes narrowed as though there was no one and nothing else in the bar.

“You!” he exclaimed when he was close enough to be heard over the raging music.

“Me?” Niall asked, his eye brows jumping up, wondering why this cutie was point at him.

“You made me lose my game,” the boy complained with a crinkle in his eyes.

“How exactly did I manage that from all the way over here?” Niall teased, now seeing the game he was being lured into.

“You were too distracting. I couldn’t focus on those little balls when I spent the whole game wishing you’d come over and introduce yourself.” The boy offered a giant smile and then said, “I’m Louis. Who is it that’s been stealing my attention?”

Flattered, Niall couldn’t help the blush coloring his face and introduced himself, “Niall, I guess.”

“You guess?” Louis teased. He had a smirk on his face that Niall found incredibly sexy. “You’re not sure of your name?”

“I mean, I guess I’m the one who was distracting you,” Niall explained with a shrug. He wasn’t used to flirting and wasn’t going to make the same mistake with Zayn and assume Louis was actually interested in more than friendship.

“Oh, you were,” Louis said with another bright smile. “Care for another drink lad?” Louis raised his eyebrows at Niall’s nearly empty pint.

Nodding, Niall agreed, escaping out the side of the booth without his roommate even noticing. He followed Louis to the bar where Louis ordered them two more pints. Unfortunately, Louis turned away from the bar while the bartender requested payment. Niall was a little flustered, not sure how this was supposed to work, so he paid for both drinks.

“Thanks Niall,” Louis said, wrapping his arm around Niall’s shoulders. “Come here often?” he asked.

“Uh, no, first time. I just started here a few months ago,” Niall said. Louis didn’t seem like he was fully paying attention. He was now scanning the bar, as though he was looking for someone else to join their fun. Niall wasn’t really sure why he’d approached him if he wasn’t interested in talking to him. After he finished his scan, Louis turned to Niall and said, “I was thinking of hitting up the club up the street. Care to join me?” He quickly downed his beer and turned to Niall expectantly, pulling his arm down and waiting for his confirmation.

Niall was a bit stunned. “Uh, no, I’m here with my roommate and his friends.”

“Pssh,” Louis said, waving his hand. “Your roommate and his friends are not nearly as interesting as I am. Come on love. Tell your boy goodbye if you want but we’re heading out.”

Unable to say no, and not entirely sure he wanted to, Niall did as Louis suggested and told Sean he was going to a club. Sean seemed surprised but waved him off with a “have fun!”

Walking several blocks to the club, Niall was over-whelmed. Louis was talking a mile a minute about his pool game that Niall had distracted him from, the friends he’d left at the bar, and the club they were heading towards. If the bar had seemed loud to Niall, the club was deafening. Immediately he realized that it was a gay bar and almost everywhere men were dancing and making out with each other. Niall had never been in a gay bar before but he was also kind of excited. Under all the fear and anxiety. Louis quickly moved through the crowd to the bar and Niall had to rush to keep up. He grabbed the back of Louis’ shirt and he glanced back with a smile but kept up his trot through the crowd. At the bar, Louis actually bought their drinks this time. Niall didn’t recognize the clear liquid in a shot glass and contemplated not taking the unidentified shot but, not wanting to be a chicken, downed half of it with a grimace. Looking up, he saw Louis laughing at him and he quickly shot back the rest of the liquor. It burned and Niall wasn’t sure it wasn’t rubbing alcohol. Once Niall dropped the glass back on the bar, Louis was off again, this time taking Niall by the hand and pulling him to the middle of the dance floor. A fast beat Niall didn’t recognize was playing and Louis seemed to be going crazy, throwing his limbs all over the place. Niall was a little concerned before he saw the giant smile on the boy’s face. With a sigh, Niall looked around at the other men around them and tried to emulate their moves. First he tried a side-to-side rock but then he started shifting his hips back and forth, hoping it was alluring looking. He had no clue what to do with his arms. Some guys had them wrapped around other men. Some had them in the air, swinging over their heads but Niall thought he wasn’t ready for that sort of movement. He settled for letting them hang at his sides, patting his hip occasionally to the beat of the music. He felt incredibly awkward.

After a few songs, Louis pushes himself against Niall’s front and attacks his lips. Niall had never been kissed before, outside of the disaster with Zayn and obviously that didn’t count. Louis’ arms wrapped around Niall’s neck for a moment and then they started working their way down his body. Holding his shoulders for a moment and then sliding down Niall’s arms, finally slipping around his waist and gripping his bum. Niall yelped but didn’t back away. Louis’ mouth was now attacking his neck and although it was a bit more aggressive than Niall felt like he was ready for, he didn’t say anything or push him away. He just needed to catch up. Even when he felt the teeth marks, Niall stood still, taking whatever Louis had to offer. After making out for a few minutes, Louis pulled back and grinned at Niall. “Good lad,” he said with a laugh. Niall looked at his phone and realized it was already 1:30am and he had class at 8am.

“I have to go!” he tried to yell in Louis’ ear but he was already facing away, grinding on another man so Niall wasn’t quite close enough. He had to shimmy around another man to get to Louis’ back where he tried again.

Louis turned back and just waved his hand in Niall’s direction. Disappointed, Niall slipped out of the crowd, glancing back a few times to see if Louis’ maybe didn’t realize what he’d said and would want to walk him home or at least get his number but he seemed perfectly content with his new friends so Niall left the club with a sigh and a headache. He got home to find his roommate fast asleep so Niall quietly changed and slipped into bed.

The next morning he felt like he was dead. No, death couldn’t hurt this much. Death must be more pleasant. His alarm sounded like a fire alarm and he struggled to untangle himself from the blankets his body was wrapped up in and yanked the phone from his side table, tapping it over and over to get it to shut up. Finally, relief. Niall dropped his head back onto his pillow. Except he had to get up and go to class. What a terrible idea taking an 8am class. Not that he had a choice. It was a general education requirement, so he forced himself up and almost fell right back down on his butt. He let his head fall into his hands and groaned.

“Hung over?” his roommate Sean asked from his comfortable spot still in bed.

“Mmmmmm,” Niall agreed, trying not to move his head to keep the swaying at bay.

“Drink some water and one of these,” he offered a pill bottle from his own side table.

Pushing himself up, Niall took slow, careful steps across the room to try to keep his head steady. Without even looking at the bottle, he shook out two pills, swallowed one dry and put the other one back onto the table next to his phone to take with him to class. He then filled a glass with water and drank it quickly. Once it was done, he blinked his eyes several times, trying to make the world feel normal again. It didn’t quite work so he drank some more water. He looked at the time and realized he’d been getting ready for over 20 minutes already and he wasn’t even dressed or showered. He crawled back into bed. He could skip class once.

A few days later, Niall was tired of moping alone. He wanted to see Louis again and he wanted to have a social life so he did his hair so the front was spiked up, put on his tightest jeans and polo shirt and went back to the club. It was still a little early, so it wasn’t quite as packed as the last time Niall was there but he figured this would give him time to warm up and actually see everyone a bit better. No Louis. Niall sighed and went to the bar to get himself a pint. He slowly drank the beer, people watching, hoping someone would want to come over and talk to him. He was oblivious to the looks he received, eyes clearly scanning for someone in the crowd. After two hours, his eyes finally landed on what he was seeking. Louis was there, dancing in the middle of the now-packed dance floor. Niall considered ordering a shot of inspiration for himself but wasn’t sure what to get, so he forced himself off his bar stool and to Louis.

Louis didn’t see him right away, so Niall slowly moved in closer and closer until he was right behind the slightly shorter boy. Biting his lip and hoping he wouldn’t get punched, Niall reached forward and put his hands on Louis’ hips, pulling him back slightly. Louis didn’t even seem surprised at the hands on his body and just backed up into them slowly. After a moment, he looked over his shoulder to see who the hands belonged to and, Niall imagined, his eyes lit up at the site of him. Louis turned himself around and started full on dancing with Niall, ignoring the other men around them. Again, Louis’ hands traveled down Niall’s body, getting a feel for his shape, finding the parts that weren’t perfectly smooth and holding on. They made out again and this time Niall let himself pay attention to what was happening so he could return the actions. When Louis starting in on his neck again, Niall pushed him away slightly and brought his own lips to Louis’ jaw in return. He tried to match the kisses, licks and bites Louis had been littering on his body. Louis let him experiment for a few minutes and then pulled away to start dancing with the crowd again. Disheartened that he wasn’t enough to keep Louis’ attention, Niall backed out of the crowd and went back to the bar, determined to order a shot this time. While he was there, leaning over to see the different bottles lined up on the shelves, Niall felt a body slide up behind him. When he turned back, he was pleasantly surprised to see Louis’ smiling face. When the bartender approached them, Louis ordered their shots without asking Niall’s opinion. It was the same rubbing alcohol he’d had the week before but Niall welcomed the burn this time.

Again, Niall went home with a headache and woke up with a hangover but he also went home with Louis’ phone number. Louis promised him they would get together again that next week so, even though Niall felt like swearing off drinking the next morning, he knew he’d be at it again when Louis called. While Niall waited for that call or text, and in between classes, Niall found himself watching YouTube videos, trying to better understand how to dance in a club. He came so close to being caught by his roommate but instead he was fairly certain Sean thought he’d been wanking due to his heavy breathing. He preferred that so he never bothered to correct him.

The text came almost just under a week later at 7pm on a Thursday: Up for it? Niall frowned that it was so blunt with no greeting but of course he was. He texted back: sure, what time? Louis responded 10 and Niall said cool, see you there ? Louis didn’t respond to that question but Niall figured it wasn’t really necessary so he got ready, wearing the same jeans as the week before but swapping his polo for a t-shirt since that’s what Louis had been wearing the two times he’d seen him.

This became their new normal. Louis would text once or twice each week, Niall would meet up with him at the club. They’d dance, make-out and drink and then go home. Louis never suggested they go home, or anywhere else, together but Niall figured he was just taking his time, working up to a real date. Only he wasn’t. The first time Niall saw Louis outside of the club, it was just past 11am and he was sitting at the student cafe with a girl in his lap. Niall stopped in his tracks and felt his mouth fall open as he watched the girl turn back over her shoulder and kiss his Louis. Niall also saw Louis had one hand around her waist and the other sitting on her thigh. When Louis texted later that night with his usual Up for it?, Niall wrote back: are you dating someone? He didn’t want to come off as rude or invasive but maybe he just misunderstood. He needed to hear from Louis whether he had a chance at more than just a dancing and make-out buddy. The response never came. That night, Niall still went to the club but he didn’t see Louis. He supposed that was his answer. He tried to dance in the crowd with other boys, drank his fair share of beer, but it just didn’t feel fun without Louis leading him along.

Now that he wasn’t at the club every week, Niall needed a new way to pass the time and potentially meet people. When he wasn’t attending classes and doing homework of course. That took up much more of his time than he expected. Niall decided he needed a job when he saw the sign on the student bookstore requesting help. He could be a cashier and file books. He knew the alphabet and could count to 100. (Really though, how high do you need to count to be a cashier?) He was hired on the spot so he assumed that meant he was the first person to apply or they were really desperate.

Niall’s trainer was named Liam and he was so nice. Liam was a bit taller than him and looked almost as strong as Bressie. He was fairly quiet like Zayn but he also looked at Niall in a way that stirred things in his belly like Louis had. Needless to say, he fell hard and fast. When he had to reach for something on a higher shelf, Liam always seemed to be near by to help. He’d reach up, causing his shirt to rise just a bit so Niall could see the hint of his six pack, and return the item to Niall with a brilliant smile. When Niall couldn’t find something in the store, Liam was there to hunt it down or give Niall tips on how to use the computer system better. And when Niall left at the end of his shift at the end of the first week, Liam was there, offering to grab dinner together.

“How about the grilled cheese place?” Liam suggested.

“The grilled cheese place?” Niall asked, confused.

Liam’s eyes lit up. “You’ve never been to the grilled cheese place!? Oh! It’s fantastic! They have like 20 different kinds of grilled cheese sandwiches. You can get all sorts of stuff on it, not just different cheeses. With or without meat, different sauces, toppings, different breads. We’re definitely going there!” Liam smiled widely at Niall, making sure he was OK with the suggestion and once Niall responded with his own smile, Liam reached out and took his hand, leading him down the street. Internally, Niall squealed, having never held a boy’s hand in public before. Even with Louis, he usually held his wrist when pulling him around the club. Niall hoped his hand wasn’t too sweaty as he was now nervous that this could be the one.

They had almost nothing in common but Niall tried. Liam liked rap music while Niall preferred classic rock. Liam didn’t care much for sports while Niall loved football, golf, rugby - pretty much anything with a ball. “Do you like movies?” Liam had asked, trying to find common interests.

Everyone likes movies, right? “Yeah, uh, love movies,” Niall had agreed. He didn’t love movies. He didn’t hate movies. He just preferred to watch documentaries about real life or to be out in the real world.

Niall found out that when Liam said he loved movies, he meant it. He spent hours on the couch watching every Marvel movie, every Harry Potter movie, and when those series were done, Liam found other “classics” for him to watch such as the Toy Story trilogy. Niall found it endearing when Liam was crying at the end of the last movie but really wasn’t moved by the animation himself. Niall could live with Liam’s movie obsession because whenever they actually went out, Liam held his hand and when Liam first kissed him, two weeks after their grilled cheese sandwiches, he asked if he could first. Niall was falling in love quickly.

Niall was also making friends with some of his other co-workers. Taylor worked most of the same shift times and loved to gossip so he knew more about most of his co-workers from her than he ever learned from them personally. He also knew that Taylor was now seeing a guy named Harry, who Niall worked out, was the same guy Zayn had been dating. When Niall asked Taylor about it, she explained that Zayn and Harry had never really been dating. Zayn had jumped to conclusions but her and Harry were something real. They hadn’t been seeing each other for long but Taylor was constantly talking about him: his dimples, his lips, his arms, his voice, and every single interaction they had. Niall was sick of Harry and he’d never even met him. He saw him a few times in the distance, the one time with Zayn and a couple times with Taylor but was never close enough to actually speak to him, or even see the dimples Taylor bragged about, not that he wanted to speak to the man who’d ruined his first shot at a boyfriend. At least dating Taylor didn’t affect his relationships this time.

“Let’s double date!” Taylor suggested one day.

Part of Niall thought it would be cool to be able to go on a double date. Another part of him was still sore at Harry, even if he didn’t know it. Niall told Taylor “maybe” and broached the subject to Liam.

“Oh, babe,” Liam responded with a surprise. “Uh, not this weekend. I forgot to mention a friend from home is coming into town Friday and staying a few days so I won’t be able to. Uh, maybe the next week? Let’s not confirm it just yet anyway. I don’t really want to go out with Taylor and that Harry guy. He seems like a real jackass. He’s been leading people on all around campus so they may not even still be dating by next weekend.” Niall frowned, not just at the guy his friend was seeing’s description from his own “guy” friend but also about Liam’s surprise visitor. Of course Niall had no problem with Liam’s friends visiting but it would have been nice if he’d told him sooner and, maybe even, invited him to meet this guy. Maybe he still would.

He didn’t. For the rest of the week Niall dropped subtle hints about wanting to see Liam and his friend that weekend, even trying to learn more about this friend but Liam kept changing the subject. Once Friday arrived, Niall and Liam texted a bit that morning but by that afternoon: radio silence. Niall sent messages, just asking if his friend got in OK and if he wanted to grab dinner together but Liam didn’t answer any of the texts. Niall wrote it off as him being excited to see someone from home and pretended he wasn’t hurt. Saturday followed a similar pattern. Niall sent the text morning Li ! Just checking in to see how your night with your friend was and see if you wanted to get lunch or dinner together.. love to meet your friend (: Again, no answer. By Sunday afternoon, Niall was fuming. It’s not that he had to see Liam and his friend but he would like to not be ignored. Liam had better have let his phone die on Friday or ended up in the hospital. OK, no, he didn’t want Liam to be in the hospital, but it would have been a valid excuse. Sunday night Liam finally messaged Niall back: Sorry babe. Was busy so i didn’t see your texts. i’ll see u tomoro at work. There was a sorry in there so Niall supposed that counted as an apology. And “was busy” was an explanation he guessed but he still didn’t feel great about it.

As promised, Niall did see Liam at work but every time he tried to get him alone and just chat, Liam found a reason to be somewhere else. Somehow he went from fuming back to hurt. He didn’t think grief cycles were supposed to be circular. As they were getting off work, Niall waited by the front door for Liam who seemed to be taking his time clocking out. “Hey babe,” Liam greeted him a few minutes later with a soft smile.

“Hey,” Niall responded, reaching out and taking his head. “Want to grab dinner together? I want to hear about your weekend.”

Pulling his hand back, Liam shook his head and said, “sorry babe, I can’t. I didn’t do any homework over my weekend so I’m way behind. I’ll see you tomorrow though, ok?” Disappointed that Liam didn’t even invite him to study together, Niall agreed, turning and heading towards his dorm room in the opposite direction of his not-quite-boyfriend.

The same thing happened the next couple of days and Niall didn’t understand what had changed. Just a week earlier Liam had been so into him and now? Now Niall felt like Liam was trying to ghost him, to disappear without ever saying they were over. When he tried to make plans for their weekend, Liam apologized and said his friend was coming back up again so he wouldn’t be available.

“Can’t I at least meet them? Maybe have dinner? I don’t even know your friend’s name Liam!” Niall was aware that he sounded desperate, needy, maybe even jealous, but this is the closest he’s gotten to a boyfriend and he wasn’t going to just give up on that. He was going to fight for it.

“Uh,” Liam looked uncomfortable, looking over Niall’s shoulder while thinking of an answer. “I, um, I don’t think that’s a good idea. Here’s the thing Ni. The friend is my ex-girlfriend Sophia and we haven’t like, gotten back together or anything, but we were really close last weekend and it might happen this weekend.”

All of the air in Niall’s lungs seemed to disappear instantly. He had no words so he just nodded his head a few times instead. Hopefully conveying the fact that he was upset but wasn’t going to argue with Liam and wished him the best. Sort of.

Liam, seeing Niall’s distress, stresses, “it might not. I mean, we broke up for a reason, and now we’re further apart, so you know.” Liam seems to be hinting that he’ll continue seeing Niall if it doesn’t work out with his ex-girlfriend but Niall can’t say the words in his head. I’m not a second choice. He shakes his head and walks away.

And, once again, Niall was alone. What did he do wrong? He saw people coupling up all around him. Bressie and Laura, his brother and Denise, Zayn and Harry, Louis and that girl, Liam and his ex-girlfriend. Even his roommate Sean had a regular girl he seemed to be seeing. With Bressie, it could have been an age thing. Or the fact that he might not be into guys. With Zayn, they didn’t really have anything in common but Niall tried. He paid attention in his art history class so he’d have something to talk to Zayn about and he listened intently to Zayn’s artistic teachings. With Louis, he tried to mirror his fun-loving, dancing, drinking attitude but he guessed he didn’t do it well enough. Liam though. Liam was fairly similar to him. They weren’t big drinkers. He didn’t have any crazy hobbies Niall couldn’t understand. Sure, he didn’t care for watching movies all the time like Liam did, but it was a small sacrifice. And, OK, so Liam didn’t really care for sports, or the same music, and he didn’t like to go out with other people, but they got along fine. And he asked Niall if he could kiss him so that was really sweet! Niall sat on a bench outside his dorm and dropped his head in his hands.

“You alright mate?” a deep voice asked him. Niall could feel his eyes watering and didn’t want to look up at the stranger with tears falling down his face so he just nodded into his hands. The man didn’t seem to believe him though because he sat down next to Niall and put his hand gently on Niall’s back. He moved it up and down slowly, as if waiting for Niall to jump up and run away or yell at him. He didn’t say another word for several minutes, just kept moving his hand up and down, obviously trying to make Niall feel better.

Niall knew he should say something but he wasn’t sure what the right words were so he just settled for, “thanks. Ya didn’t have to.”

“I know,” the voice responded again. “But it seemed like you could use a little comfort. If you want to talk about it, I’ll listen. If you’d prefer to not spill your problems to a stranger, I get that too.” The voice was sexy and Niall was tempted to scrub at his face and peek at the man between his fingers but he didn’t want to risk it. He knew the tears were still going to be obvious so he’d just try to outlast the stranger’s kindness.

“That’s OK. I don’t really want to talk about it. Um, you don’t have to stay though. I’ll be fine. I’m not like hurt or anything,” Niall explained. “Not like physically I mean.”

“You didn’t look hurt physically. Did someone hurt you emotionally? I’m totally willing to go beat them up for you. You’re too cute to be hurt,” the stranger flirted.

Niall couldn’t help but sputter out a laugh. “You haven’t even seen my face. You think the back of my head is cute?” He tried to casually wipe his face so he could look back up at the stranger to see if he was as sexy and sweet as he sounded. Well, Niall knew he was sweet. Look at what he was doing and saying!

“Oh, I’ve seen your face before. Plenty of times in fact,” the stranger answered confidently.

Niall was shocked at the statement and whipped his head around quickly to see who was sitting on the bench. It was Harry, the man who stole Zayn and was dating his co-worker Taylor. The second thought he had was that Taylor was right. Taylor had amazingly plump, kissable lips and the most adorable dimples.

After a moment, Harry said, “see something you like?” obviously noticing Niall’s staring.

Gasping, Niall turned away with a blush. “Uh, how have you seen me? I mean, I’ve seen you a couple times but never like, up close.”

“Well,” Harry started, scooting a bit closer to Niall so he could feel the heat of his thigh. “I saw you those couple times too but you never seem interested in talking to me. I’ve probably seen you a few other times too. Just, you know, around campus. Plus we actually have a class together. I sit in the back of your literature class.”

Once again, Niall can’t help the pull of his eyes to Harry’s face. “We have a class together? How have I never seen you there?”

“Well, I’m guessing it’s because you’re not really awake. It is an 8am class,” Harry explained with a shrug.

Frowning, Niall still nodded, agreeing with the statement but not understanding how he could have missed this. “Oh, well, OK then. I, um.” Niall stood up.and turned back to Harry, not able to meet his eyes. “Really, uh, thanks for stopping. I’m feeling a bit better now. I just didn’t feel like going back to my dorm room and having my roommate question why I was all sad and mopey and shit. So, yeah, thanks.”

Harry was still sitting on the bench, looking up at Niall, wondering why he was avoiding his eyes. “Not a problem. Uh, can I get your name?” Harry seemed a little nervous with his question which Niall found odd. He was a player on campus. He knew everyone. Maybe this was why. Maybe this was his shy, innocent act.

“Niall,” he answered softly. “You’re, uh, Harry, right?”

Beaming at the recognition, Harry agreed. “How did you know that?”

“Uh, you were seeing Zayn Malik and now you’re dating Taylor Swift, right?”

“Oh,” Harry answered, surprised, the smile falling from his face and then biting his lip. “Uh, Zayn and I went out a couple times, yeah and Taylor and I hang out but I wouldn’t say we’re dating exactly. Just, well, I mean, she’s not like my girlfriend or anything. We just go out sometimes.”

“You don’t have to explain yourself to me,” Niall clarified. “I’m just saying that’s how I know your name. Zayn, uh, told me he was interested in you and going on a date and then Taylor talks about you all the time at work. I work with her at the bookstore.”

Harry stood up and moved the couple feet to where Niall was standing. “It’s just, I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. That’s all.” He ducked his head down, trying to look in Niall’s eyes.

With his face still looking down, Niall rolled his eyes up to look at Harry. Niall swallowed. “It doesn’t really matter what I think, does it?”

“Course it does,” Harry said softly. “I wouldn’t want you thinking I was off the market or something.”

Still staring in his eyes, Niall froze. Harry was flirting with him? Harry Styles. Flirting. With Niall Horan. If he thought any of the other guys he was seeing were out of his league, he had no chance at Harry. None. Niall shook his head to get the thought out of his head. Harry was just being nice. Or he was teasing him. There was absolutely no way he was sincerely interested in dating him.

“Do you want to go grab dinner or something?” Harry asked then, trying to break Niall out of the frozen trance he seemed to be in.

Frowning at what was clearly a trick, Niall shook his head no. “I, uh, I need to get back to my room. Do some homework and stuff.”

Harry actually looked let down. “Well, maybe I can get a rain check then?”

“I, uh, I don’t think that’s a good idea. I know you said you’re only sort of seeing Taylor but she’s my friend. I don’t think it’d be nice if I went to dinner with you.” With that statement, Niall gave a small small and started walking backwards slowly, waiting for Harry to say goodbye, or at least acknowledge his statement.

“You’re going to get hurt walking backwards like that,” he insisted instead. Niall couldn’t help but laugh and shake his head. Realizing Harry wasn’t going to respond to his refusal, Niall turned around and started walking to his dorm. He had to bite his bottom lip to keep his face from exploding in a giant grin. He did not have a crush on Harry Styles.


	3. I could fall or I could fly

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to just combine the last two parts... It's only 10K so I think you can handle it. ;)

The next morning, Niall walked into his literature class and had no control over his head as his eyes scanned the room, looking for the lovely brown curls he’d finally gotten close enough to touch. Not that he _did_  touch them but he kind of wishes that he had. They looked soft and Niall’s hair didn’t curl unless he let it get long so he was rather interested in twisting his fingers in it to see how it felt. In the middle of his internal conversation, Niall spotted Harry staring right back at him with a smirk on his face. It’s like he could read Niall’s mind and _knew_  that he was searching for him and imagining running his fingers through his hair. Niall wanted to look away, to pretend he’d caught Harry’s eyes by mistake but he couldn’t. He kept walking to his normal seat, occasionally pulling his eyes away to make sure he didn’t trip over a desk or another student but they kept going back to the piercing green ones that were watching him navigate the room. Niall was actually disappointed when he reached his desk as he had to sit and face away from the dimples. 

It was extra hard for Niall to pay attention that day. He wanted to look over his shoulder but he didn’t want anyone to know what he was doing, so he dutifully kept his eyes forward, though his mind certainly wasn’t on the book the professor was discussing. At the end of class, Niall took his time gathering his notebook, his pencil and his highlighter, which had all sat on his desk unused for the session. Once they were put away in his bag, Niall looked up and saw Harry standing right in front of him, just a desk separating them.

“Hello Niall,” Harry greeted pleasantly.

“Hello Harry,” Niall returned the pleasantry.

“Did you take good notes this class?” Harry asked. “I was a bit distracted so I’m afraid I didn’t hear much of what the professor said.” He looked bashful with his request and Niall had no clue how to interpret his intentions.

“Uh, no, not really. I’m not a good note-taker,” Niall explained, shaking his head a few times quickly. He had already shoved his notebook away so he wouldn’t have to show that he’d taken _no_  notes that class, actually distracted, probably unlike Harry.

“That’s too bad. Well, maybe we should study together then,” Harry offered.

“Because two people who don’t know what’s going on will learn a lot?” Niall asked skeptically.

Harry laughed at Niall’s logic. “Right. So maybe we read a bit more of the book and then we meet and talk about it before the next class?”

Niall swung his bag over his shoulder and rubbed his lips together. He didn’t know what to do. He could probably use the help but it didn’t seem like Harry was going to be the best person to help him. “Are you normally good at this class? Like when you’re not _distracted_?” Niall asked.

“I am,” Harry nodded with a small smile. “I’m an English major actually so I’d like to think I’m pretty good at this whole literature thing.”

“Then I guess you don’t need me since I’m just a music major,” Niall couldn’t help but respond. He felt his eyes lighting up as Harry’s eyebrows raised in astonishment. Niall decided that was the time for him to leave before he got himself in trouble. He slipped around the side of the desk and started walking to the classroom door.

“But don’t you need my help?” Harry asked as he caught up quickly.

“You think I’m a dummy then?” Niall asked, only partially teasing.

Harry was obviously caught off guard by Niall’s response and fumbled for his own. “No, no, of course not. That’s - that’s not what I meant. I just, you know, everyone could use a study buddy and since you’re a music major and I’m an English major, I could maybe help you out.”

Unfortunately for Harry, Niall had more ammunition on his side. “Didn’t you come up to me for notes a little bit ago? Wasn’t that why you approached me? I’m still not sure you’re the right person to help me, Harry.” Butterflies were now fluttering around his stomach, excited that he was able to tease this cute boy. He groaned to himself as he remembered Harry is dating his friend. He needs to stop before he gets himself in too deep. He needs to find a nice boy. One who isn’t interested in someone else already, who has similar interests and is just _nice_. _Harry’s nice_ , his brain supplies. _And a player_ , the other half of his brain reminds him.

“You know why I approached you,” Harry answered with a low, seductive tone. It made Niall’s butterflies start clawing his insides, begging to be free. They would never be free around Harry though, so Niall had to find a way out.

“I think you approached me because you want to tease me for some reason. I’m not going to be a one night stand for you Harry. Or even a one week stand. I’m looking for something serious. I have no interest in being someone’s plaything.” Niall could feel the anger now building inside of him as he understood more clearly what was happening here. He was Harry’s _toy_. That wasn’t going to happen. He wouldn’t allow himself to be played _with_ , not in this way.

“Wow,” Harry murmured. “How did I fuck up so badly with you when we’ve only had two conversations now?”

Niall stopped in his tracks and turned to look at Harry stunned. “You _know_  why. You’re a player Harry. Your reputation precedes you and, even if it didn’t, you’re dating my _friend_. I’m not like you. I care about people’s feelings and I wouldn’t do that to her.” This time when Niall turns and walks away, Harry doesn’t follow him and Niall is _not_  disappointed.

Later that afternoon, Niall is working with Taylor and he doesn’t know if he should bring up Harry. Normally Taylor goes on and on about him but today she’s been kind of quiet. Niall wonders if that means Harry has let her go but it doesn’t feel appropriate asking. He exaggerated when he told Harry they were friends. They were co-workers who chatted at work regularly. If they ran into each other outside of the store, they would wave and say hello but they never made plans to see each other outside of that one double date Taylor had suggested.

“So, what’s new?” Niall asks while they’re both leaning against the cash counter. He’s really hoping Taylor will bring up Harry but he knows any sort of gossip could jump out of her mouth.

“Oh, not much,” Taylor answers offhandedly. She seems sad so now Niall is positive that Harry ended it. _Jerk_.

“That’s surprising. You’re usually so talkative. Something wrong?” he asks. He yells at himself that he’s going to hell for pushing this but can’t seem to stop himself.

Taylor looks up at him and sighs. “It’s Harry,” she finally answers quietly. She looks around to make sure no one else is within earshot and then explains, “he says he likes someone else. He won’t tell me who. Just says this person - doesn’t even clarify if it’s a boy or girl - is really sweet and he thinks he could _really_  be with them. I thought he was really with me!” Niall can see her eyes starting to water and frantically looks around for tissues or another human to help. He sees a box of tissues and grabs them, handing the whole thing to Taylor. She takes one out and dabs at her eyes.

“I’m so sorry Tay,” Niall responds. He doesn’t know what else to say. He wants to point out that Taylor knew Harry got around but realized she’d only mentioned him seeing Zayn previously. Two people does not a player make, he thought. It was _Liam_  who called him a player. Niall briefly contemplated asking Liam what else he knew about Harry but quickly squashed that idea. They hadn’t spoken since their not-really-break-up the day before and Niall wanted the streak to be much longer than one day.

“It’s OK. I’ll be fine. I just need to find someone else,” she says wistfully. “Plenty of fish in the sea, right?”

Niall smiled at her and put his hand over hers for a moment before adding, “and hot men at this campus.”

That got Taylor to laugh so Niall felt like he’d done well. He found out that Harry and Taylor were no longer together, Harry was interested in something _serious_ , and he got Taylor to feel a little better. Of course the middle one was the thought that would occupy his mind for the next two days. Did Harry really want to be serious? If so, did he mean him? Surely not. There must be someone else Harry was wanted and Niall was just a temporary fix.

The 8am literature class was two days each week: Tuesday and Thursday which meant just a day and a half later Niall was faced with Harry again. This time when he walked into the classroom, Niall’s scan of the room was less sweeping and narrowed right into where Harry had been sitting last session, and was still sitting this time. Harry wasn’t watching Niall though and Niall tried to be happy about that. Harry was reading a book at his desk so at least he wasn’t scoping out some other unsuspecting student.

Once again, Niall didn’t listen to the professor and instead obsessed about Taylor’s statement from the day before. When the class ended, Niall took his time standing up and gathering his belongings. As he was stuffing his notebook in his bag, he saw Harry walking right past him and out the door with no acknowledgement. Even though Niall knew better, he acted on instinct and jogged up to Harry and matched his strides without a word. After they took several steps together, Harry turned to his new companion with no surprise on his face. “Can I help you?” he asked.

Niall wasn’t sure how to respond. He didn’t even know why his feet were still in step with Harry. Instead of using words, he just shrugged. Harry kept walking, hitching his bag higher on his shoulder every now and then and purposefully _not_  looking at Niall. They were approaching Niall’s dorm and since he knew he wasn’t going to find the bravery to say anything of substance to Harry, he murmured, “see you later,” as he turned towards his building.

The next few classes followed the same pattern with Niall only able to form a few words each walk. Harry continued to be cool, acting like he didn’t care if Niall walked with him or not. He barely even seemed to notice him until two weeks later, Niall asked, “are you seeing anyone right now?”

Harry’s step was half it’s normal stride in reaction and he almost seemed to fall forward in surprise. He recovered quickly, glancing at Niall and then continuing on as if Niall hadn’t said anything. Niall was convinced Harry wasn’t going to answer but just when he was about to say his usual goodbye, Harry said, “no, I’m not,” and kept walking while Niall stopped in front of his building. It was progress Niall thought. 

Two days later Niall asked his question a little sooner in their walk: “is it true you want to be in a real relationship?”

Still waiting until they approached Niall’s dorm building, Harry replied, “a player wouldn’t want a real relationship, would he?” Niall watched as Harry continued his stride down the sidewalk, turning abruptly around a corner a block later, out of Niall’s sight. Niall couldn’t help but feel a hint of guilt in his stomach at Harry’s answer. Clearly his words had stuck with him.

The following Tuesday, Niall started their “talk” as soon as they left the building. “I’m sorry I said all that about you being a player. I only really know about two people you dated. It’s just your reputation. I would love it if you would tell me what you’re really like.”

Niall watched for a reaction and saw Harry swallow and swipe his tongue over his bottom lip. He glanced his way and after a few minutes said, “I don’t mean to lead people on. I get excited when I meet someone I find interesting and I tend to go overboard I guess. Dive right in without taking my time to see if it’s the right move.” He’s quiet after that and Niall just wants to apologize over and over again. “I thought it might be different with you. I thought you might feel the same.” This time when they reach Niall’s building, he doesn’t stop. Harry turns his head and asks silently what Niall is doing but he keeps walking until they get to the corner where Harry turns. Niall did the turn first and looked over his shoulder to see Harry standing still, just watching him. “What are you doing?” he asked curiously.

“I want to get to know you better and clearly this little walk isn’t enough so I’m going to walk _you_ home for once.” Niall can feel his heart in his throat but he doesn’t regret his actions or words even a little bit. He _does_  want to get to know Harry.

Harry is looking around, as though he’s thinking of a response and he finally looks up through his eyelashes at Niall and nods. “OK,” he agrees softly.

“So, tell me about yourself,” Niall starts lamely. He doesn’t know the right way to ask Harry what they have in common and who he’s dated and if he’s _worth it_.

“Uh,” Harry scratches his arm, contemplating an answer. “That’s generic,” he teases. “Let’s see, you know I’m an English major. I’m from Holmes Chapel which is in Cheshire. I have an older sister named Gemma. She’s my best friend.” He looks a little bashful at that admission but Niall thinks it’s sweet. “My parents are divorced but my mum is re-married. My dad is dating. I love music. All kinds but I have a soft spot for the Rolling Stones and Fleetwood Mac. I’ve sort of dated three people since I got here but none of them lasted more than two weeks. I wish people would just be nicer. What’s so wrong with holding a door for someone or just thinking about other people sometimes?” Harry visibly swallows at his admissions, then turns to Niall and asks, “you?”

Taking a breath, Niall tries to answer with similar items. “As _you_  know, I’m a music major and I also love all sorts of music. Fleetwood Mac are legends so good on you for that. It’s rare kids our age like the classics like that. And I’m obviously from Ireland, Mullingar to be exact. I have an older brother Greg and my parents are divorced too. Oddly enough, my ma is also re-married. My da is not. I’m not even sure if he wants to be honestly. We’ve never really talked about it. Though he deserves to be happy so I kind of hope he does meet someone. Uh, what else? I love space. The stars are just really cool and I like to learn about new constellations. Unfortunately, they’re not easy to see around here and then?” Niall stalls for a moment, trying to remember what else Harry had said. “Oh, I haven’t really dated anyone here but not for lack of trying. I liked Zayn but he liked you first. This was this guy Louis but I couldn’t keep up with him and we didn’t really have much in common. Then there was Liam - you know Liam, right?”

“Yeah,” Harry nodded. “We’ve met a couple times. Kind of boring though, isn’t he?” he asked, screwing up his face as though he didn’t get it. “I mean, he might be perfectly nice but I don’t really know what he’s into and whenever we’ve spoken, there hasn’t really been any substance to it. It’s always been like the weather.”

Niall couldn’t help but chuckle at Harry’s summary of Liam. He _was_  kind of boring and still a jerk. “He’s alright and didn’t you just say you thought people should be nicer?”

Harry blushed, clearly ashamed at himself. “Yeah, sorry. You’re right.” After a moment of Niall snickering, Harry turned to him and said, “thanks for calling me on my bullshit.”

“Anytime,” Niall agreed. “Anyway, Liam was the closest I came to dating someone. I mean, I guess we really were dating but not like boyfriends or anything.”

Nodding, Harry said, “I understand. That’s what most of mine have been too. Kind of feeling it out to see if they’re someone you want to spend time with.”

“Uh, yeah,” Niall agreed, though he didn’t. He was just hoping to get a boyfriend. He hadn’t thought too much about getting to know them. _Shit_ , maybe he needed to re-evaluate his goals. Niall looked around and realized they had backtracked and were on the _other_  side of their lecture hall. “Wait, you live over here?” he asked, confused.

Again, looking a bit embarrassed, Harry nodded. “Yeah, just over there,” he said pointing ahead to another dorm.

“But can’t you just go out the other side the English building to get here?” Niall was looking back and forth between the two buildings to see if he missed something.

“Yeah, could,” Harry agreed.

“So, wait,” Niall said piecing the puzzle together. “You’ve just been walking the other way so you could walk with me?”

“Yep,” Harry replied, darting his eyes to the side of his head to see Niall’s reaction. His smile was wide and his eyes bright so Harry figured he’d done the right thing. He was even more sure when Niall reached out and grabbed his hand, squeezing it but not letting go. They finished the rest of the short walk in silence, just appreciating each other’s company and the fact that maybe they hadn’t messed up too badly. When they got to Harry’s dorm, he looked at Niall shyly, while still holding his hand and asked, “can I take you on a date?”

“I’d love that,” Niall tried not to gush. “I, um, I work tomorrow until 6 but I’m free after. Or, you know, another day too.” He was trying not to sound desperate but wanted their date to be sooner rather than later. He knew he’d be too nervous to wait much longer.

Dimples showing, Harry confirmed, “tomorrow night works for me. I can pick you up at work if you want?”

Niall started to nod, liking the idea of not having to wait even longer but then remembered Taylor. It probably wouldn’t be very kind of him to rub Harry in her face. “How about I meet you somewhere else?” he suggested. “What do you want to do? I can meet you there.”

Harry seemed a bit let down but agreed. “Sure, yeah, somewhere else. Um, we can do dinner and, uh I’ll figure out something else to do after unless you have an idea?”

“No, that’s fine. Where do you want to eat?” Niall is biting his lip to keep his face from showing just _how_  ecstatic he is at getting a _real_ date, with Harry Styles no less.

“How about the Japanese place on Main Street?” Harry suggested.

Niall couldn’t help the disgusted look on his face. “ _Japanese?_  As in _sushi?”_

“You’ve never had sushi?” Harry exclaimed surprised. “Well, you can get tempura or something and I’ll get some sushi so you can try it. If you don’t like it, we can go somewhere else.”

“OK,” Niall agreed doubtfully. Harry said they could get him more food if it was gross so he could give it a try. He’s always willing to try.

That night Niall laid in bed staring at the ceiling trying to figure out if he was making a mistake with Harry. He seemed so nice but so had Zayn and Liam. Louis hadn’t been so sweet but he’d been fun. He’d certainly seemed interested in him. He closed his eyes and imagined things working out. He imagined Harry sitting next to him when he graduated and when he found a real job. He started to imagine Harry sitting next to him when he was upset and realized he already had that memory. Harry had been so sweet when he’d been crying his little broken heart out on that bench. Niall knew he was going to give it his all again. _He would make this work_. 

The next day Niall saw Taylor at work and he made every effort to be on the other side of the store from her at all times. Unfortunately, that meant he was working closer to Liam. Liam who had been sulking for the past week. Liam who apparently had _not_  gotten back together with his ex-girlfriend and wanted another go at Niall. It wasn’t going to happen. “How are you doing Ni?” Liam asked, stopping in front of Niall and trying to get the Irishman to talk to him.

“Great Li, I have a date today,” Niall couldn’t help but brag. Liam had his chance so Niall had no problem telling him what he was missing.

“Oh!” Liam was clearly surprised and he didn’t try to hide the frown on his face. “Who with?”

“Harry,” Niall answered directly. There was no point lying or dancing around it. If the date worked out, Harry and Niall would be seen together soon enough. If the date _didn’t_  work out, well, Niall wouldn’t think about that.

“Harry Styles?” Liam asked slowly, unsure.

“Yep,” Niall confirmed. He was currently sorting new books into their different categories to be shelved and Liam was just standing in front of him, holding a book, though Niall wasn’t sure what for or what he was doing really. Niall refused to look up and see Liam’s puppy dog eyes.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea Ni? You know he’s a player. He could be just using you for some fun until something better comes along.” Niall could feel the anger burning inside of him all of a sudden.

“Harry is _not_  a player and why would you think he was?” Niall had stopped sorting and crossed his arms over his chest in a defensive stance.

Liam’s eyebrows popped up, evidently startled by Niall’s attitude. “Uh, well, there was Taylor, and Zayn, and I’ve seen him with other people around school. He’s not with anyone for very long, is he?”

“Neither am I,” Niall said in a hardened voice. He wasn’t going to listen to Liam anymore. He picked up a stack of books and walked out of the stock room to shelve them.

“Just be careful,” Liam called after him. Niall pretended like he didn’t hear him but the words echoed in his head for the next few hours until his shift ended.

As soon as the time clock turned 6pm, Niall swiped out and rushed out the door. Harry knew what time he was off, so there was no need to speed to the restaurant but he just wanted to be away from Taylor and Liam and their negative attitudes about Harry. Niall was going to have faith. 

When Niall got to the restaurant, Harry was standing outside. He had dark rinse blue jeans on, a red plaid shirt buttoned up halfway and a white tank top underneath. Niall couldn’t think of a better word to describe him than sexy. Harry seemed to sense eyes on him because he looked up and greeted Niall with a grin. 

“You came,” Harry said, looking a bit relieved.

“Of course I came! Why would you think I wouldn’t?” Niall asked. He leaned forward, and against his better judgement, kissed Harry on the cheek. He was amazed that the cheek was slightly warm and pink. He pulled back and gave Harry his most sincere, gentle smile to get him more comfortable.

“Just, you know, after everything. And you were working with Taylor and Liam today so, just, they could have changed your mind. _You_ could have changed your mind,” Harry responded nervously.

“No babe, I want to be here,” Niall reassured him.

“OK, good,” Harry said relieved. Gaining some confidence, he reached down and took Niall’s hand, leading him into the restaurant. Although Niall was still skeptical about eating raw fish, he tried it as promised and, astonishingly, loved it. He ended up finishing Harry’s California rolls and ate a couple of his Rainbow rolls as well. Harry ate Niall’s tempura chicken so it wouldn’t go to waste. Once they were done, Harry insisted on paying. “I asked you out and I made you try Japanese. Of course I’m going to pay,” he argued. “Now for our date activity. Let’s go!” Harry stood up and gestured for Niall to follow him out the front door.

“Where are we going?” Niall asked, tentatively reaching out and taking Harry’s hand. Harry laced their fingers together which calmed Niall down a bit about the action.

“We’re going to the science museum,” Harry offered.

“The science museum?” Niall echoed in surprise. “At night?”

“Yep, they have a nighttime show at the planetarium. Uh, you said you like stars and couldn’t see them well here so I thought that would be kind of, uh, cute. Is that OK?” Harry’s face shifted from proud to nervous as he described where they were going. 

“That’s brilliant!” Niall exclaimed. “I’ve never been to the planetarium here! I went to one in Dublin once with my family and once with my school. It was so cool!” Niall couldn’t help but walk a bit faster, pulling Harry behind him, in anticipation of their destination. Harry lengthened his strides to keep up.

At the museum, Harry purchased their tickets while Niall read the brochure describing the show. He realized after that he should have offered to pay for his own ticket, but he’d been too distracted. He’d pay for their next date. Niall stopped reading the brochure and froze realizing he just said he was going on another date with Harry. _What if Harry didn’t want a next date?_  Niall knew it was too early for him to be freaking out but he couldn’t help the sudden ache in his stomach at the thought that Harry wouldn’t want to go out again.

“What’s wrong Niall?” Harry asked, noticing the change in Niall’s attitude. “Are you OK?”

Niall shook his head to clear the negative thoughts and smiled at Harry. “Yeah, no, I’m fine. Sorry, that was just, nothing. I’m really excited. The show tonight is showing us what is in the night sky tonight so what we _would_ be able to see if their wasn’t so much light pollution. So they’ll tell us what constellations, planets and stuff is out there right now and in the next month!”

“Very cool,” Harry said, smiling at Niall’s excitement.

“Are you into space and stuff too?” Niall asked as they started their walk inside.

“Uh, not really,” Harry answered with a shrug. “I mean, it’s interesting and all while I’m here but I’m not going to go out of my way to learn more or anything. I’m more of an arts guy than a science guy.”

Frowning, Niall asked, “why did you take me here then if you’re not really into it?”

“Because you are,” Harry said with a grin which caused Niall to duck his head away to avoid showing off his blush.

Niall’s eyes lit up when they walked in the planetarium. Nothing was displayed yet but just looking at the dome and the seats that leaned back got him more excited. During the whole show, his eyes were darting all around, trying to take it all in and remember everything the announcer was saying. Even though he couldn’t see much outside, he wanted to try to find the same constellations and planets in real life. A couple times Niall looked over at Harry to see if he was getting into the show as much as he was, but it seemed like Harry was watching his face more than the night sky. Niall just hoped he wasn’t pulling a “him” and jumping into someone else’s hobbies just to keep them interested.

Later, as they were walking back to Niall’s dorm, Niall asked Harry, “so what are you interested in? Like other than books and music.”

“Pretty much all the arts really. I like theater, I enjoy actual art to look at but only up to a point. I can’t talk about the meaning of colors and lines all day like art majors can but I enjoy a good museum.” Niall knew he was referring to Zayn with that comment. Zayn definitely liked to spend time understanding artist’s intentions and wanted even more to share that with someone else. “You said other than music but I really love music. A lot. Concerts, musicals, live bands in a bar, listening to a record player. Pretty much anything with music makes me happy.” Harry is beaming as he talks about his love for music and Niall can definitely relate. Niall decides music will be incorporated in their next date in some way. After all, it was the only thing, other than sushi now, that he _knew_ they both loved.

When they reach Niall’s dorm, Harry puts his hands on Niall’s biceps, leans in and kisses his cheek. “Is that OK?” he whispers before pulling away. “I don’t want you to go back to thinking I’m trying to play you or anything so I’m going to go slow.” He pulls back to see Niall’s face.

“Who says I want to go slow?” Niall teases.

Harry looks confused. “But, you said you didn’t want to be played with and usually that means someone wants to take things slower.”

“Or it just means I want you to really like me, not be using me until you find someone better,” Niall states, crossing his arms. Niall sees Harry looks a little distressed so he sighs and adds, “listen, baby, I’m not saying you’re doing that. I realize that I misjudged you and I’m sorry.”

“Don’t call me baby unless you mean it,” Harry huffs. “For as much as you talk about my reputation, we’ve dated about the same number of people and I don’t want to just be someone for you to call your boyfriend. I’m looking for someone to share my interests, someone who wants to be with _me_. Zayn wanted to be with me but we had almost nothing in common. Taylor wanted to be with me but she really didn’t _know_  me. She spent all of our time together gossiping about people around us and wanting to go to public places to like show me off or something. It was embarrassing.” Harry looks miserable as he finishes his little speech.

Niall is shocked. He didn’t realize Harry was so concerned about his intentions. He took a step into Harry and wrapped his arms around his neck, pulling him down slightly so he could speak to him eye to eye. “I like _you_. I know I don’t know you very well yet but I want to. I want to know what puts that secret little happy smile on your face I see sometimes. We can go out in public or stay inside on our own. We already know we have some stuff in common and I really like you Harry. What you did tonight, taking me to the planetarium is honestly the best date I’ve ever had. I don’t want you to feel like you have to do things just cause I like them though. I want to do things you like too. So, our next date - assuming you want a next date?” Niall paused to ask Harry with a little fear he’d want to back out now.

Harry nodded several times, “I want another date.”

Niall let out a sigh of relief and said, “good, so I’ll find something we can both appreciate. When are you free?”

“Anytime,” Harry breathed out.

Niall couldn’t help the warm feeling inside of him and chuckled. “You have classes silly. You can’t be free anytime.”

“I’ll skip them,” Harry responded with a grin.

“You will not!” Niall argued with a more boisterous laugh. “Just tell me a time you’re free and you want to go out with me.”

Harry sighed and put his arms around Niall’s waist, pulling him closer so their clothes were now brushing. “How about Friday night?”

“Yes, please,” Niall nods, pleased. Tentatively, he leans forward and pecks Harry’s lips, closing his eyes in the process. “Is that OK?” he whispered.

“Yeah,” Harry responded with his breath, dropping his forehead on Niall’s for a moment before returning just as gentle of a kiss. “I’ll see you in class tomorrow.”

“You will. Maybe you might want to sit by me?” Niall asked with a small, teasing smile.

“I would _never_ hear the professor if I sat too close to you,” Harry teased back. “Goodnight.” Harry started walking backwards, watching Niall who stood still in front of his building, also watching Harry depart.

“Be careful. It’s dangerous to walk backwards,” Niall called after him. Harry laughed and turned around, glancing once more over his shoulder at Niall before he started walking home.

That night instead of sleeping, Niall laid awake thinking about date ideas. He would love to do something with music since he and Harry shared that passion. He got on his computer and tried to find some live music playing on their date night. He didn’t find much surprisingly. There was a big concert downtown but he couldn’t afford those tickets. They could go to karaoke but Niall didn’t know if Harry was into singing or drinking and listening to bad singers ruin perfectly good songs. One event caught his attention: “Learn to dance with a live band.” Niall sat back on his bed and stared at the ad a big longer. He was a terrible dancer but it could be fun. Maybe Harry would appreciate his terrible dance moves and make him seem a bit more vulnerable. Plus, there was a live band which is what Niall set out to find. _That’s it_ , Niall decided, nervous about Harry would feel about his date idea.

Friday night Niall was picking up Harry for once. He made it to the front of his dorm and took a deep breath before starting up the steps. However, before Niall could enter the building, tall, dark and handsome was walking out with a brilliant smile and crater-sized dimples. He dressed up a bit more than he had on their last date. He had a button up black shirt with a couple buttons undone, black jeans and black boots with a silver buckle. _Delicious_ , Niall thought. “You look great,” he said instead, not wanting to embarrass himself with his real thoughts.

“So do you,” Harry complimented him, leaning in and kissing his cheek like Niall had done at the beginning of their last date. Niall was wearing a white long sleeved shirt with little palm trees on it, sleeves rolled up to his elbows and blue jeans.

“Thank you,” Niall responded quietly. 

“Where are we headed?” Harry asked, slipping his fingers between Niall’s.

“Well, how good of a dancer are you?” Niall asked nervously.

“Terrible,” Harry answered definitively with a laugh. “Are you going to make me dance?”

Dread filled Niall’s stomach. “Oh, no, that’s OK. I won’t make you dance. I mean, I’m pretty terrible too but I was just trying to find something with music and there’s these dance lessons to a live band going on tonight so I thought that might be fun but if you don’t like dancing, that’s OK. We can, uh, we can go somewhere else.” Niall’s mind was going a mile a minute. He didn’t have a back-up plan. He _should have had_  a back-up plan.

Harry’s laugh broke Niall out of his terror. “I didn’t say I hated dancing. I said I’m terrible at it so if you’re terrible too than maybe these lessons will be fun _and_  helpful.”

Niall released a big breath. “OK, good, yeah. That’s kind of what I was thinking too. When I started going to the club, I had no clue how to dance so I started watching YouTube videos so I wouldn’t stick out so much. I’m pretty sure I still looked like an awkward Irish kid though.”

“I’m sure you were adorable,” Harry said with a grin. They had started walking and he asked, “so what kind of dancing are we learning anyway?”

“Oh,” Niall frowned. “I don’t remember actually. I mean, I read the whole ad thing but I can’t remember what it said about styles. Maybe it varies?”

“Oh, this could be fun. Don’t laugh at me if I fall please,” Harry asked, trying to joke, but looking genuinely concerned.

“Promise,” Niall said, squeezing his hand.

It turns out there were a variety of dances being taught. There was a line dance where Harry almost fell into their neighbors, a Tango where Niall _did_ fall out of Harry’s arms, and a Foxtrot that the boys kept laughing through. By the end of the song, they had received so many glares that they decided they should probably spare the rest of the class and leave.

“How do you feel about karaoke?” Niall asked, giggling as they exited the building.

“ _Love_  karaoke!” Harry exclaimed, immediately bursting into song: _Don’t go breaking my heart._  He turned to Niall, waiting for the follow up line.

After a moment, Niall sang _I couldn’t if I tried._

_Harry: Oh honey if I get restless  
Niall: Baby you’re not that kind_

_Harry: Don’t go breaking my heart_  
Niall: You take the weight off me  
Harry: Oh honey when you knock on my door  
Niall: Ooh I gave you my key

_Both: Woo ooh nobody knows it_  
Harry: But when I was down  
Niall: I was your clown  
Both: Woo ooh nobody knows it  
Niall: Right from the start I gave you my heart, oh oh  
Both: I gave you my heart   


Both cracking up laughing, they couldn’t keep singing. “Elton fan then?” Niall asked.

“Who isn’t?!” Harry exclaimed.

“No friend of mine!” Niall agreed.

They were overly giddy and they hadn’t even had any alcohol. When they got to the karaoke bar, Harry started listing out songs they could sing together as he looked through the options. “Two Become One!”

“The Spice Girls!?” Niall exclaimed. “No!”

“You’re no fun!” Harry teased. “Fine. Want to stick to classics? ‘Dreams’? Oh! Meatloaf!” Harry yelled before bursting out in more laughter.

“You want to be the girl in ‘Paradise by the Dashboard Light’?” Niall asked. 

“I could do it!” Harry agreed.

“How about something that actually has two guys singing so neither of us has to test out our soprano?”

“That sounds like a boring idea Niall. I’d quite like to hear your soprano,” Harry said, raising his eyebrows in suggestion.

“Yeah, no. If either of us are trying out our falsettos, it’s going to be you Mr. Spice Girl,” Niall said pointing at Harry’s chest and stabbing it a couple times with his finger.

Harry gasped and exclaimed, “Bohemian Rhapsody!”

“No!” Niall yelled in response. “The bar would kill us if we sang for that long on a Friday night! What about Wonderwall?”

“ _Boring_ ,” Harry chided.

Niall groaned. “Fine. What about a boy band? Like the Backstreet Boys?”

Harry glared at Niall. “If we’re doing a boy band it will be ‘N Sync.”

“Fine!” Niall agreed throwing his hands in the air. “’Bye bye bye’?”

“Only if you do the dance with me,” Harry said, serious for the first time in this conversation.

“Hell no. ‘Tearin’ up my Heart’ then?” Niall asked after scanning the list of their songs.

Harry grinned and agreed, filling out the slip of paper with their names and song choice and quickly delivering it to the front before Niall could change his mind. “Now that the important stuff is out of the way, would you like a drink?”

Niall looked up and said, “yeah, yeah, but it’s on me. You paid for our last date. What do you want?”

“How about a rum and pineapple please?”

“Sure. I’ll be right back,” Niall said, heading to the bar since he didn’t see any wait staff.

On his way he noticed the familiar body of his sort-of ex Liam. Niall swallowed and settled at the bar stool behind him, flagging down the waiter so he wouldn’t be there too long. “A Guinness and a Rum and Pineapple please,” Niall ordered. As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he felt Liam turn and see him.

“Niall,” he greeted him with a smile.

“Hi Liam. How are you doing mate?” Niall asked, trying to maintain a friendly but distant attitude.

“Good good. Just drinking my sorrows away. You know,” Liam said enthusiastically, as though he’d just said he was celebrating a promotion.

“Oh, uh. I thought you didn’t really drink,” Niall commented, not sure what the proper response to a depressed ex who dumped you for someone else should be.

“I don’t which is why it’s probably hitting a bit harder than usual. Oh! Are you going to sing? I remember that you like music!”

“Right. It’s my major and yeah, I am.” Niall’s drinks were placed on the bar and he quickly gave his card to the bartender to cash out. Once the receipt was returned he signed it quickly and parted ways with Liam. “See you later Li.”

Niall settled back in his seat across from Harry and pushed the rum and pineapple to his side of the table. Harry asked, “was that Liam I saw?”

“Yeah, it was,” Niall confirmed, sipping his beer.

“I heard he didn’t get back together with his ex-girlfriend after all. Does that mean he wants you back?” Harry looked like he was trying to be casual but didn’t look comfortable at all. He was looking at the drink in his hand, swirling it a bit, avoiding looking at Niall.

“Even if he wants to, he can’t. First of all, because I’m dating someone I like a lot and second, I’m not going to be someone’s second choice. So, good luck to him finding someone new. Maybe he can hook up with Taylor, who I also see across the bar.” Niall tipped his glass in the direction of the tall blond about to take the karaoke stage.

Harry glanced over his shoulder to see her but turned back to Niall to ask, “you like me a lot huh?”

With a soft smile, Niall nodded. “I do. Probably more than I should for our second date.”

“So, you still want something serious?” Harry asked leaning over the table to be closer to his date.

“For sure,” Niall answered, leaning in as well.

“With me?” Harry asked innocently.

“Definitely,” Niall confirmed.

“Niall and Harry singing ‘Tearin Up My Heart’ in the style of ‘N Sync are up next!” they heard over the speaker.

While on stage performing, Niall kept his focus on Harry who seemed to be doing the same. Even though Niall could feel Liam’s eyes, and maybe Taylor’s, no one mattered that wasn’t on stage with him right then. Harry got on his knees for the bridge, singing with his back to the audience causing Niall’s smile to _hurt_  it was stretched so wide. “Ready to get out of here?” Harry asked in Niall’s ear after the song was over.

“Please,” Niall said softly, taking Harry’s hand and leading him out of the bar.

On the walk back to the dorm, they couldn’t stop giggling and re-living their performance. “When you got on your knees I couldn’t stop laughing! But, honestly, it was the best part,” Niall declared. “You’re a pretty amazing singer. Maybe _you_  should be the music major.”

“Or maybe I’m supposed to be the English major so I can write our future songs, you can write the music, and we can sing them together since you’re pretty damn talented yourself.” Harry slipped an arm around Niall’s waist, pulling him closer to his side as they continued their walk.

“That sounds genius,” Niall agreed. When they got back to Harry’s dorm, Niall didn’t hesitate to give him a kiss goodnight. “Thank you for a great night.”

“No, thank,” Harry paused to kiss Niall again, “you for the good night. The dance lessons were amazingly fun and completely random. I feel like they might have been wasted on us though. I don’t know that we’re any less terrible.”

“Oh, I think we’re a step above terrible,” Niall disagreed. “Atrocious at the worst,” he said with a chuckle.

“That sounds worse to me,” Harry teased. “But I’ll accept a minuscule step up. Regardless of how helpful it was, it was fun and I love that it was not a typical date. I had a _lot_  of fun with you tonight. So much fun, I’m ready for our next date.”

“Thank god. When?” Niall asked, wrapping his arms around Harry’s neck.

“Tomorrow?” Harry asked with a little smile and mischievous eyes. “No school. Might as well take advantage. And the store is closed sooo, are you free for another date?”

“Can’t wait,” Niall said leaning in and kissing Harry _again_. It was really all he wanted to do right now. “I take it you already have an idea?”

“I do,” Harry said with a nod. “Pick you up at noon?”

“Sounds good. Good night Harry,” Niall said without unclasping his hands from Harry’s neck.

“Good night baby,” Harry said with a smirk.

“Don’t call me baby if you don’t mean it,” Niall teased.

“Oh, I mean it,” Harry said. With one more kiss, Harry backed away and started up the steps to his building. He turned at the door and waved at Niall, blew him a kiss and walked inside.

The next day Harry picked up Niall and they walked to the bus station so they could go to the local carnival. Harry had heard about it from his roommate a couple days earlier and thought it’d be a great date idea. Niall was excited since he hadn’t been to a carnival or an amusement park of any type in several years. The first thing Harry did was buy tickets for them which Niall fought for several minutes. “Harry, I only had to pay for your drink last night. We didn’t even have dinner! Please let me pay for our tickets. You can get our lunch later or something or games.”

“Niall,” Harry explained gently, “this is my date therefore I’m paying for it. Don’t worry about the cost. My parents give me spending money while I’m at school because they don’t want me working yet. They think I’m sitting at home studying all the time. So just let me do this.”

Grumpily, Niall agreed but perked up as soon as they were inside the carnival grounds. He was a little overwhelmed at all the rides, games and carnival food! He grabbed Harry’s hand and started pulling him through the booths, trying to figure out what he wanted to do first. “Let’s do the roller coaster!” Niall exclaimed.

“Oh, uh, can we build up to that maybe?” Harry asked, rubbing the back of his neck bashfully. 

Niall stopped in his tracks and looked at Harry carefully. “Are you _afraid_ of a little roller coaster Harry?” he asked with a small grin.

“I’m not afraid! I just, you know, want to do some other stuff first. Like, uh, like those little airplanes!” Harry pointed out the kiddie ride of mini airplanes that fly in a circle where the occupant makes it go up and down with a lever in the seat.

Niall bent over laughing. “You - you want to go on the kiddie ride?” Harry’s face was heating up and Niall realized he was serious.

“There are adults in the line too!” Harry pointed out.

“Yeah, and they all have kids with them,” Niall noticed. Seeing Harry chewing on his bottom lip, Niall realized he might have been a little too mean for a third date. “OK, OK, I’ll go in an airplane with you,” he agreed, standing back up straight and taking Harry’s hand, leading him toward the line.

“No, we don’t have to do that. Why not, uh, why not the fun house? That seems, uh, fun,” Harry said, looking all around them for another suggestion that wouldn’t cause Niall to laugh at him.

“Nope, too late. We’re going to fly the airplane around the world.” Niall had pulled him into the line and separated out the tickets they needed, prepared to give them to the ride attendant. The best thing about this ride so far was the short line so they’d be on the very next one. The second best thing he noticed, was that Harry and him would have to squeeze into a very small space. “You want the back or the front?” Niall asked peering over his shoulder at the taller man who hadn’t quite recovered from his embarrassment.

“Uh, I’ll take the back. Longer legs,” Harry said, nodding down as though Niall needed compare the length for proof. Niall faced forward again with a big smile on his face. He was OK with Harry taking the back.

When they got to their little airplane, Niall stood back so Harry could climb in first. It was a comical sight. His knees were visible over the side and he was squishing his legs to the side to create enough room for Niall to fit in between his thighs. It was a tight fit but Niall felt oddly comfortable, in between fits of laughter. He tried to keep the laughter at bay so Harry didn’t get embarrassed any more but it was a pretty silly situation having two grown men in a kiddie plane ride. “You gonna fly us?” Niall asked, turning his head and letting it fall back on Harry’s shoulder.

“Uh, I’m not sure I’m in the best position to do that. Feel like you might be in a better spot to be captain.” Harry’s hands were settling on Niall’s waist, trying to find a comfortable, not too invasive place to sit.

“Your plane captain,” Niall said, letting himself slide down a bit so Harry could reach around him better.

Harry groaned but played along. He moved his butt, and Niall, forward a tad so he could get his hands on the joystick that would send them into the air. Although it was _definitely_  meant for kids, Niall actually had a really good time with Harry making the occasional airplane noises and pointing out “landmarks” around them. “Look Niall! It’s the great Haunted Mansion of Hawthorne that you can only get to by plane! And the best tea party in all of England! Oh! Oh! I’m amazed we made it this far. We made it all the way to Asia! Look at the tigers and elephants all marching in a circle!” 

Niall giggled at Harry’s imaginative trek around the world and tried to offer his own input. “Oooo look at that Haz! It’s the Love Tunnel! I hear if you ride that with someone you might love and make it to the end, you’re destined to stay together forever.”

“Think it’s worth a shot?” Harry asked, all embarrassment finally gone as the ride was coming to a stop.

“I don’t see a down side,” Niall said, pushing up on Harry’s thighs to try to un-wedge himself out of the little ride. When he made it to the ground safely, he reached up to help the taller man down. “That was quite a flight. A bit better than I expected to be honest.”

“I mean, how could it be bad when we’re together?” Harry asked with a goofy smile.

“So you’re a soppy romantic, huh?” Niall asked with a grin.

“That depends. Are you OK with that?” Harry reached out and threaded their fingers together, waiting for Niall’s answer.

“Unbelievably.” Niall leaned over and kissed Harry’s cheek. “So, tunnel of love then?”

“The anticipation is killing me! I can’t wait to see if we make it to the end!” Harry joked.

“If we do, then I think we need something to commemorate it. Like a stuffed animal or something else equally soppy. Whadya think?”

“Sounds brilliant,” Harry agreed.

Of course they made it to the end and Harry made sure to kiss Niall right under the heart exit for maximum cheesiness. Once they were off the little boat ride, Niall pulled Harry to the games. He surveyed them all to see what he might be good at to win Harry a present. Before he could pick, Harry was already walking to the milk jug competition and handing money to the game attendant.

“Uh, Harry. Didn’t you say you’re not super sporty?” Niall asked, frowning. He liked the idea of Harry winning something for him, but he didn’t want him wasting his money.

Harry looked back at Niall and just offered him a large smile, showing off his teeth and dimples before turning around, staring at the jugs for a moment and then throwing as hard as he could. Niall was actually shocked at the force behind the throw, not so much by the target. He missed them all. Harry’s shoulders slumped for a moment but he seemed to focus a bit harder, licking his lips, holding the ball up and throwing almost as hard, but right at the center of the jugs! There were still two standing and Niall found himself chewing on his nails to see if Harry would get them with his last ball. Harry looked at him with a gentle smile and asked, “could I get a good luck kiss?” Niall groaned but definitely leaned over and pecked his cheek quickly. He then stood back to watch Harry focus even _more_  on his last shot. He only knocked one of the two down. His shoulders fell in defeat but before Niall could console him and tell him how great he did, Harry was already handing more money to the game attendant. 

“Harry! You don’t have to do it again! Why don’t we find another game? I can try to win something for _you_!” Niall wrapped his arm around Harry’s elbow, trying to pull him away but Harry just smiled at him, pulled his arm loose and prepared his first throw just as carefully as his last on the previous game. This time he knocked down _all_  of the jugs on the first try! Niall’s eyebrows jumped up and his jaw fell down in shock. “You did it!” he yelled, throwing his hands in the air in celebration.

Instead of gloating, Harry just turned to him, looked in his eyes, and asked, “and what prize would you like baby?”

Niall felt a bit like he was melting but he dutifully turned to the prizes and pointed out a white bear with a red bow tie. The game attendant took it down, handed it to Harry with a “congratulations” and Harry turned to Niall to offer it to him. Niall pushed himself against Harry, squishing his new bear between them and quickly kissed him, harder than ever before. Maybe it was the Tunnel of Love, maybe it was seeing Harry win him a prize, or maybe it was the way he called Niall ‘baby’ - whatever it was, Niall wanted him more than ever. 

Several moments later, Harry pulled back with a “wow” escaping his lips. “That was amazing,” he said, letting his eyes close and his head drop down onto Niall’s. He said softly, “I know we’ve talked about this but I think we need to one more time.”

Niall didn’t want to pull away so he just opened his eyes and looked up at Harry’s closed ones asking, “talk about what?”

“You, me, us. I’m pretty sure this is harder than I’ve ever fallen for someone so I just want to make sure this is what you want. If you’re at _all_  unsure about us. If there is any part of you that thinks I might be playing you or that we wouldn’t be a good match, please just tell me now.”

“I’m sure,” Niall whispered, twisting his head just a bit so they were still connected and he could kiss Harry’s cheek. 

“Good,” Harry said with his breath out. “Cause I’m pretty sure I’m falling for you. I can be pretty needy sometimes so I hope that's OK.”

“Don’t say you need me if you don’t believe it. That’s a serious statement and if you say things like that I might just try to dive right into you.”

Harry pulled his head back and opened his eyes so he could look at Niall. “I need you baby,” he said with a small, genuine smile. “And you can dive right into me anytime,” he added with a cheeky wink.

“I need you too baby,” Niall agreed, closing the gap for another kiss. “You can take me on an airplane ride whenever you want. I’ll travel this world with you.”

“I’m going to take you up on that Niall Horan.”


End file.
